February 26, 2013

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NORMAN, Okla. – Senior Keilani Ricketts dominated the
competition at the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic last weekend and has
earned Big 12 Pitcher of the Week honors for her efforts, the conference
announced Tuesday.

In posting a 3-0 record, Ricketts did not
allow a single run in 23.1 innings of work, including 21.0 innings
against teams ranked or receiving votes. She struck out 34 batters and
gave up just five hits to go with three walks allowed as the No. 1
Oklahoma softball team went 5-0 over the weekend to improve to 15-0 on
the year. Ricketts has been named the Big 12 Pitcher of the Week
13 times in her career, including the initial honors in 2013. Along
with Michelle Gascoigne last week, the Sooners have taken home all three
Big 12 Pitcher of the Week accolades this season.

In the weekend
opener on Friday against No. 16 Georgia, Ricketts gave up just one hit
and one walk while striking out 10 in the 100th complete game of her
career as the Sooners won 5-0.

The lefthander from San Jose,
Calif., picked up her first save of the season in a 5-2 win over UC
Santa Barbara on Saturday. She held the Gauchos hitless over the last
2.1 innings, striking out four.

Locked in a tight pitchers’ duel
on Saturday night against Nebraska, a team that was receiving votes,
Ricketts helped lead her team to a 2-0 win. Ricketts threw her fifth
shutout of the season as she struck out nine batters in a complete-game
effort. She yielded just three hits and allowed one walk. Her scoreless
effort allowed the Sooners' offense, which was no-hit through six
innings, to take the lead in the top of the seventh.

In improving
to 7-0, the senior struck out 11 and allowed just a lone single in the
first inning against No. 23 Florida State as she threw her sixth shutout
of the season and lowered her earned run average to just 0.78. Ricketts
and the Sooners retired the final 16 Seminoles batters of the game, not
allowing a base runner beyond the second inning.